


After the Frost

by Storyteller_of_the_Forest



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Brodinsons, Brothers, Family is family, For all the adoptees out there, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Loki (Marvel) is a Good Bro, No Slash, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Thor (Marvel) is Not Stupid, Thor (Marvel) is a Good Bro, hospital stay, lots of comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-08
Updated: 2018-09-08
Packaged: 2019-07-08 14:23:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,237
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15932273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Storyteller_of_the_Forest/pseuds/Storyteller_of_the_Forest
Summary: When Thor awakens in a strange setting, he is a little nervous. However, he soon realizes he's just in the hospital due to a debilitating headache. When Thor is allowed to return home, a certain trickster god is there to take care of him as he recovers from a splitting headache, which is triggering many unpleasant memories.(Set after the events of "The Frozen Forest")





	After the Frost

**Author's Note:**

> So here's the fun story of how this short one-shot came about. One of my adoptee friends was recently attacked online by some cow who said, "Adoptees shouldn't have representation. We can't normalize this barbaric practice of local adoption." Then she implied the trope of fridging adoptees was a good thing and representation actually hurt adoptees like my friend because it made them feel like being adopted "was okay or normal" (leading to one of best online interactions when I jumped in and wrote: "She would be dead if she hadn't been adopted, you heartless c--t!" and then it just escalated from there until my friend finally blocked her).
> 
> I've had a very rage-filled week, in other words.
> 
> I asked my friend how I could help, after blocking the wretched anti-adoption woman. She asked me to write something about New Asgard, something short and sweet (because I'm still buried under deadlines at the moment), which showed adoptees in a positive light and showed that they're not expendable. I told her I'd do my best and I actually finished sooner than I expected. If you enjoy this, you can thank her.
> 
> That was the motivation for this story. The inspiration came from watching routines of Sinead and John Kerr (ice dancers, a pair of siblings) with another friend of mine. Regular readers know I'm rather frustrated with the constant fetishizing of non-traditional families and how doing so values one sort of love over another. Lately, I've been watching a lot of the Kerrs routines with another friend of mine and I highly recommend looking up two in particular: the routine set to the song "krwIng" by Linkin Park and their 2008 - 2009 free dance (which I think is set to a song by Muse). Both routines are all about siblings supporting each other through difficult times. Watching them, I couldn't help but think about the bond between the Odinsons, how it has evolved over the years.
> 
> This is set a short time after the events of "The Frozen Forest," so you should probably read that fic before you read this one.
> 
> REGULAR WARNINGS
> 
> Haven't seen Infinity War and am not going to see Infinity War. I don't do romantic ships, especially not between family members. If you're into that kind of thing, go elsewhere please (and don't tag my work with incest ships, please).
> 
> In my mind, after the battle with Thanos, Thor left the Avengers to take care of his people. The original Avengers disbanded and there's a mostly new group of superheroes taking up the mantel. I feel like the original team earned a retirement after defeating Thanos. However, they all still keep in touch and visit each other on occasion.
> 
> Kudos and reviews are greatly appreciated. I don't own anything, obviously all characters and recognizable aspects belong to Marvel.
> 
> I hope you enjoy the story and thank you for reading :)

* * *

 

He awoke in a strange place. His head was throbbing, the pain nearly blinding him. The strong scent of antiseptic stung his nose and somehow, made the ache in his head even worse. There was a thin blanket covering him and a soft pillow beneath his head. Something over his ears was muffling his hearing. He groaned and turned his head to the side, wincing at the harsh light that assaulted his sensitive eye.

Thor closed his eye and swallowed, pulling the headphones off his head. Opening his eye again, he looked around at his surroundings. The intense headache made focusing difficult, but he tried anyway. Everything was so bright and there was a soft humming noise surrounding him. Looking up, Thor noticed a blurry circle above him. Suddenly, the stiff board he was laying on started to move, sliding deeper into the strange blue circle. Thor instantly tried to move away from the strange plastic cave, lightning starting to sweep over his limbs. Grimacing, Thor raised a hand to his aching head. He felt so weak and even thinking seemed to make the pain in his head worse.

The board he was laying on abruptly stopped as did the humming and Thor looked around at his painfully bright surroundings, which had suddenly gone very quiet. He heard a door open and soft footsteps approach. The god of thunder raised his hand, both to shield his eye from the light and to defend himself. Wherever he was, it reminded Thor of the ship of Asgardian refugees. It was much too large and much too clean to be the Guardians’ ship. Thor had no memory of entering a ship, but he had no idea where he was.

“Thor? You okay, buddy?”

“Banner?” Thor whispered, squinting as he tried to see his friend. Recalling his lightning, he winced when the pain in his head started to intensify.

“Yeah, it’s me. Do you know where you are?” Banner asked in his gentle, calm voice. Thor blinked against the onslaught of light, trying to get his vision to clear.

“A ship, perhaps? Though I do not remember how we got here,” Thor replied. “It’s…difficult to see anything.”

“I know,” Banner said and Thor could hear the hesitance in his voice. “You’re probably really sensitive to light at the moment. We’re not on a ship. We’re in the hospital in New Asgard. You’ve been experiencing a rather nasty headache the past few days, which has apparently been getting steadily worse. We want to do a CT scan just to make sure there’s no internal bleeding or blockages causing it.”

Glancing around again, Thor started to recognize the room he was in. The machine even looked vaguely familiar. It was one of the many gifts from Stark when Fury and Brunnhilde had been working to set up New Asgard after the war against Thanos. The eccentric billionaire had donated a lot of state of the art medical equipment and helped them find technicians to operate such machinery so the Asgardian refugees would not have to worry about healthcare. It had saved a great many lives, especially during the first few years. They had named a wing of the hospital after him in gratitude, which Stark greatly appreciated. According to Banner, it was his profile picture on social media for a time.

Thor swallowed and closed his eye again, raising a hand to rest on his aching head. He could vaguely remember developing a headache, which got so bad that he could barely leave bed. His brother had been caring for him and the Valkyrie had as well. The more he thought about it, the god of thunder started to remember Brunnhilde calling the hospital while Loki sat with him. The trickster and the Valkyrie had a quiet conversation. Shortly after that, Loki helped him into Brunnhilde’s car.

“Where is my brother?”

He hated how small his voice sounded, but he felt disoriented and uneasy. Waking up in strange surroundings, alone, had triggered an anxious feeling deep within his chest. Thor longed for something familiar, something reassuring. _Just have the scan done and then you can leave or at least see Loki and Brunnhilde,_ he thought, irritated with himself.

“I assume Loki is out in the waiting room with Brunnhilde,” Banner replied and Thor could hear him tap his fingers on the file he was holding. “Would you feel better if he came in here real quick? Just to put your mind at ease?”

Thor put a hand over his face, nodding once. He heard Banner’s footsteps fade away again. The throbbing in his head got worse and Thor pressed both hands against his temples, sucking in his breath. He’d never experienced a headache as bad as this in all his years. It felt like when Thanos had been squeezing his head. Just before he…

Thor clenched his eye shut, covering his face again, and breathing softly. He could feel warm wetness against the palm of his hand and the god of thunder drew in a shaky breath.

“Thor?”

Thor almost let out a sob of relief when he heard the trickster’s familiar smooth confident voice. Opening his eye, Thor turned his head in the direction of Loki’s voice. His brother was standing by the door, dressed in green and black. The god of thunder squinted, wishing he could see clearer. The pain in his head was interfering with his ability to focus on anything.

“Come closer,” Thor requested and the trickster glanced over to Banner who stood beside him. After a beat, Loki approached Thor, standing next to the stiff board he was on. Thor smiled faintly, able to see the trickster a little clearer.

“Closer,” he whispered, doing his best to make his voice sound even weaker. Loki frowned, staring at him suspiciously. After a moment, the trickster cautiously crouched down so he was closer to his brother. Thor immediately reached out and put his hand on Loki’s face.

“Ah good. You’re really here,” he said. Even though Thor’s palm covered most of his face, he could see Loki’s green eyes, which reflected irritation. A few feet away, the god of thunder could hear Banner snort.

“Was that _really_ necessary?” Loki mumbled from behind Thor’s palm. “I could have just told you that I was, in fact, here.”

“God of lies,” Thor pointed out, dropping his hand and closing his eye. “Your illusions can speak too. Had to be certain.”

“Right, well, now that you’ve assured yourself that I’m really here,” Loki muttered as he started to straighten up again. Thor reached out and grasped Loki’s thin wrist, feeling the cool flesh against his naturally warm palm. The trickster turned back to him, raising an eyebrow in question.

“Thor, I cannot remain with you while the scan is done. I swear to you, I will be just down the hall,” Loki assured his brother. Thor swallowed, trying to figure out what to say. He trusted his brother, as much as one could, but he still didn’t like being separated from the trickster. Especially not so soon after the war against Ymir.

“Loki, if they find something—”

“Norns,” Loki muttered, rubbing his eyes. “Thor, they’re not going to find anything. This is just a precaution.”

Thor winced and clenched his eye shut again, the pain in his head intensifying. He whimpered softly, pressing his other hand against his brow. He heard Loki sigh softly and when Thor opened his eye again, he saw his brother kneeling beside the stiff board he lay upon.

“You’re worried,” Thor observed as he carefully released his brother’s wrist.

“I’m not,” the trickster protested. Thor studied his brother’s form.

“If you weren’t, you wouldn’t have brought me here,” the god of thunder pointed out, which made Loki flinch. “Brother, what happened?”

The trickster was quiet for a moment, his brow furrowing as though he were thinking. He raised his eyes to meet Thor’s again. “You developed the headache a few days ago and it kept getting worse. You started having difficulty eating and moving. When you woke up today, you seemed a little disoriented, so Brunnhilde called the hospital to explain the situation. They wanted us to bring you in as a _precaution_ , so we did. The doctors believe it might be due to the recent trauma you endured, but they want to run a scan just to be safe.”

Thor closed his eye again, shivering a little. The noise and smells in the room were making his headache worse. It felt like his skull was about to explode. He felt Loki gently squeeze his hand. Opening his eye, Thor looked back to his brother.

“I do not wish to die, Loki,” Thor whispered before he could prevent the words from escaping him. The trickster’s eyes widened slightly for a brief second before his mask of unshakeable confidence settled over his expression again and a smirk danced across his lips.

“You won’t, brother. I find it hard to believe a mere headache could fell the mighty Thor,” Loki replied back, keeping his voice soft and muted. Thor grimaced and swallowed, trying to deal with the pain he was in. Without meaning to, he whimpered softly and turned his face to the side.

Seeing a faint green and gold light, Thor looked to his brother. Loki was holding out his free hand, light spilling from his fingertips and gathering across the room, a few feet away from Thor. The god of thunder watched as a perfect replica of his brother formed at the end of the stretcher.

The illusion crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back and adopting the relaxed stance of the trickster. A familiar smirk played across the illusion’s lips. Thor let out a soft laugh and looked over to Loki, who dropped his hand and turned his attention back to his brother. A mischievous grin split the trickster’s lips and his green eyes sparkled with life.

“I am not able to physically remain in this room with you,” Loki mentioned and the illusion moved a little closer.

“But I can stay here in other ways,” the trickster spoke through the illusion. Thor snorted and shook his head, wincing at the pain it caused.

“Thor, you must remain completely still during this scan,” Loki told him. “You can’t move at all, but you can speak. You need only whisper and I shall hear. And I shall try to keep the illusion within your line of sight.”

Thor closed his eye and nodded once, wincing at the ache. He felt Loki rest his cool brow against his temple briefly.

“I shall see you again afterwards,” he promised the god of thunder. “They will do this scan, find nothing, and then we can return home.”

The trickster glanced over his shoulder when a couple nurses entered and straightened up again, gently patting Thor’s shoulder before he turned and left the scanning room. Thor closed his eye and listened to the movement around him.

“Okay, big guy, this is probably going to take about thirty minutes. They’re going to put headphones on to block out the noise of this machine,” Banner explained. Thor opened his eye and noticed Loki’s illusion step away from the people in the room. His brother met the god of thunder’s gaze and offered him a grin.

Thor sighed and looked back up at the ceiling, closing his eye.

_*_

Brunnhilde looked up from the magazine she had been paging through when Loki strode back into the small waiting room. The trickster glanced at the large painting of Iron Man on the wall and shook his head, muttering something under his breath about Midgardians. He dropped gracefully into the empty chair beside her, massaging his brow and closing his eyes.

“How’s Thor?” the Valkyrie asked.

“In pain, enough that he’s not insisting he’s fine,” Loki replied, glancing over to where the person who checked them in was sitting. His green eyes traveled back to Brunnhilde. “How long is this scan supposed to take?”

“Banner said fifteen to thirty minutes,” she said, watching him with a half-smile. “You left an illusion with your brother, didn’t you?”

Loki rolled his eyes. “Brunnhilde, I’ve got things to do. I would prefer we not be stuck here for any longer than we have to be. If I can put Thor’s mind at ease, they can do the scan without any delay.”

“Okay, my prince, whatever you say,” she replied dryly, humoring him, as she turned another page in the magazine. Loki side-eyed her as he grabbed a nearby magazine, flipping it open. Shutting it, he turned his gaze over to the Valkyrie, who was still grinning as she looked at her magazine.

“I know I’m almost certainly going to regret asking this,” the trickster began, drawing her attention back to him. “But how could you possibly know when I use illusions?”

Brunnhilde smiled and put down her magazine. “Thor was pretty out of it when we brought him in. Chances are he woke up in the scanning room and felt uneasy, which would explain why Banner came to get you. When Thor is feeling anxious, he will almost always reach out to you. And, as much as you try to deny it, you cannot bear to see your brother in pain. It is common knowledge that you are a master of illusions. Leaving an illusion with Thor not only comforts him, it gives you the ability to watch over your brother. Therefore, I assumed you left an illusion with Thor and I think that’s adorable.”

Loki stared at her. “I genuinely don’t know whether to be impressed or annoyed.”

Brunnhilde chuckled and looked back to her magazine. Loki leaned forward, his slender frame rigid. He started methodically rubbing his palms together.

“I hear your cats have finally been given names,” Brunnhilde mentioned, making conversation. “Parker mentioned that Darcy Lewis was given the honor.”

“Apparently Parker and Lewis are friends and when he mentioned Thor had acquired cats, she called my brother,” Loki replied, a small grin tugging at his lips. “She decided to name the black one after herself and the tortoiseshell after Jane.”

Brunnhilde snickered. “You’re telling me one of your cats is named after Thor’s ex?”

Loki nodded. “The one that seems to prefer my company, ironically.”

Brunnhilde hid her face behind the magazine, snickering. She did love living in New Asgard and the Odinsons were truly entertaining at times.

Loki watched the doorway, no longer interested in the outdated magazines. The time crawled on slowly and things were peaceful. Occasionally, the quiet would be interrupted by a soft conversation in the hall or an announcement over the system.

Soon, Banner reappeared in the doorway. Both Loki and Brunnhilde stood when the doctor approached them.

“They’re done with the scan and they’re reviewing it right now,” Banner reported. “It looks clear, no clots or blockages. They’re just giving it one last look to make sure they didn’t miss anything. Thor’s resting in a patient room right now. I can take you up to him.”

Loki nodded and followed the doctor out of the room with the Valkyrie close behind him.  The trickster held his hands behind his back.

“Do you have any theories about the cause of this headache?” Loki asked as they approached the elevators. Banner shrugged, pushing his glasses up on his nose.

“I can’t say for sure. Thor had to undergo some pretty major surgery after Ymir’s attack. Sometimes anesthesia can cause really bad headaches, even after some time has passed,” Banner responded, pressing the button to call the car. “They usually last a few days. The healers will give you a prescription for a painkiller and he’ll probably need to be on a liquid diet for a couple days. Other than that, you just need to wait it out.”

Loki nodded as they stepped into the elevator. The three of them watched as the doors slid shut and the car gently started its ascent to the next floor.

“He’s probably going to be sensitive to light for a while, but that’s easy to manage. Just try to keep the lights dimmer and if you’re going anywhere bright, make sure he wears sunglasses,” Banner continued, glancing up at the numbers above them. The car came to a smooth stop and the doors slid open again.

They stepped out into the hall, noticing healers rushing about on the relatively busy floor. Banner led them to a room, opening the door for them. Brunnhilde smirked when she saw the illusion of Loki standing beside Thor’s bed, watching over the god who was curled up on the bed. The trickster easily recalled it and continued to his brother’s bedside, lightly sitting on the edge of the large bed. Thor had his hands pressed against his temples. When he felt the mattress dip slightly, the god of thunder carefully removed one hand and looked up at his brother, offering the trickster a small pained smile.

“See, brother, I told you I’d see you after the scan,” Loki spoke softly. Brunnhilde smiled as she watched the two of them.

“You’ll probably be able to get out of here in another ten minutes,” Banner whispered to her and she nodded. “I’ve got to continue doing rounds, but I’ll probably see you at some point tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Banner,” the Valkyrie said as she looked over at him. He smiled and dipped his head before turning and leaving the room. Brunnhilde noticed an empty chair nearby and moved over to it, dropping into it. She leaned back and closed her eyes, waiting for the healers to return with the results of the CT scan.

_*_

After the scans came back clear, Thor was released and allowed to return home. Brunnhilde drove the Odinsons back home and Loki helped his brother inside. As Thor crawled under the covers, Loki drew all the blinds and turned off all the lights, so the god of thunder was left in calming darkness. Sometimes the cats would wander into the room, usually lounging on the bed next to the god of thunder.

The headache was the worst Thor had ever experienced and it left him bed ridden. He lost track of the days, trapped in unending pain. The painkillers offered no relief. Everything seemed to make the pain in his head worse and his eye frequently watered. Sometimes, Thor could swear he felt Thanos’ powerful fingers crushing his skull. That sensation left him shivering, both in pain and fear.

He wasn’t entirely aware of what was happening around him. Sometimes the haze of pain would lift enough for him to be able to focus on something. Thor was occasionally aware of his brother feeding him broth or something cool and soft. He couldn’t eat much, but Loki was able to coax enough into him to leave him feeling less weak, less helpless. Sometimes the god of thunder would be aware of the gentle coolness of seidr pooling around his temple or at the base of his skull, offering him momentary relief from the pain and allowing him a few blissful moments of sleep.

One night, the pain was excruciating, and Thor let out a cry, digging his fingers into the sides of his head. It felt like his skull was going to crack and he could feel tears flooding down his face. He was shivering even though he wasn’t cold. For a moment, he became completely lost in the horrible memory of Thanos squeezing his head, about to end his life. Thor knew what happened next. It was a memory that still occasionally haunted his dreams. He attempted to remain silent, not wanting to wake Loki, if it were night. Thor wasn’t entirely sure.

“Thor?”

Thor pressed his face more into his pillow, still clutching the sides of his head and panting for breath. After a moment, he felt Loki’s cool hand rest on his. Thor clenched his eye shut.

“Brother, please talk to me,” the trickster spoke softly. Loki was very good at keeping his voice muted so it didn’t cause Thor further discomfort. “It is not just the pain that torments you, is it?”

Thor swallowed and shook his head. “The headache, it feels like pressure…like someone is squeezing my head.”

Loki was quiet and Thor risked glancing up at him. He couldn’t see much in the darkness, just a silhouette of the trickster. Thor swallowed, feeling a little nauseous.

“Thanos?” Loki guessed and Thor nodded.

“I fear if I fall asleep, either I will die or I will wake up to discover you have died at the mad titan’s hands,” Thor whispered. It was difficult to speak through the fog of pain.

Loki was silent for a time and then Thor felt the mattress dip a little as his brother swung his legs up onto the bed and scooted closer to the god of thunder. He yanked a pillow out from under Thor’s head and positioned it behind his own head.

“You’re not going to die, Thor, and I’m most certainly not going to either,” Loki mumbled. “I’ll be here in the morning, you’ll see. Now try to get some rest, for both our sakes.”

Thor swallowed and inched closer to his brother, resting a hand on the trickster’s chest, which rose and fell steadily.

“The pain is worse, Loki,” Thor told him and he felt his brother shrug.

“Perhaps it means the headache is ending,” Loki replied. “I’m sure when you wake up in the morning, you will feel better.”

Thor sighed and curled up closer to the trickster, comforted by the soft sound of his even breathing. He looked past the darkness in the room and his eye slowly slid shut.

_*_

The Odinsons had never been peaceful sleepers and rarely woke up in the same position that they fell asleep in. It was something that continued into their adult years.

The next morning, Thor woke up with his head on his brother’s chest and the trickster was mostly on the pillows at the head of the bed. One arm was protectively thrown across Thor’s chest and his head rested on the other. The god of thunder smiled faintly, nestling more against Loki’s chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart.

“How are you feeling?” Loki asked and Thor kept his eye closed.

“Much better. The pain in my head has greatly lessened,” Thor responded. “What time is it?”

“Early,” Loki replied around a yawn. “Go back to sleep.”

Thor nodded and allowed his mind to drift off again. Eventually, he felt Loki disentangle himself and get off the bed. The god of thunder lay in bed for a few more minutes before he decided to attempt to get up. He felt a little unsteady when he stood up and he noticed a pair of sunglasses on the bedside table. Glancing to the window, Thor peered out of the blinds, wincing at the bright sunlight. Grabbing the sunglasses, he put them over his eye and then made his way out of the room.

Loki barely looked over his shoulder when Thor entered the kitchen. The god of thunder gingerly sat in his usual spot, rubbing his brow lightly. His headache had lessened but it wasn’t completely gone. As if to taunt him, the kettle on the burner started whistling shrilly. Thor grimaced and Loki was quick to remove the kettle from the burners.

“Apologies, brother,” Loki said as he poured hot water into two large mugs, glancing over his shoulder and smirking. “That’s a good look.”

Thor chuckled, noticing the newspaper on the table. He contemplated attempting to read it, but a pulsing in his head made him think better of it. Pressing his palms together, Thor glanced over to where his brother was preparing tea.

“Is there anything that requires my attention?” Thor asked, looking over to where the cats were eating their breakfast.

“Nothing that can’t wait until after breakfast,” Loki replied easily, bringing the tea to the table. The trickster moved over to the refrigerator, pulling open the door. Thor smiled as he watched his brother.

“It’s very odd,” he commented. “Seeing you making breakfast.”

Loki snorted as he retrieved a container of butter, putting it on the table in front of Thor. “Well, don’t get used to it. I assure you, this is done purely out of necessity.”

“All right, brother,” Thor humored him with a faint grin. Loki moved back into the kitchen, opening one of the drawers and retrieving a butter knife, which he brought to the table. It seemed like a lifetime ago that they had been at each other’s throats. Now, living together, at peace, it was more than Thor had ever dared hope for.

He was drawn out of his thoughts by the sound of two slices of bread popping out of the toaster. Loki moved over to the appliance, opening a cabinet and retrieving a dish. He grabbed the two slices, placing them on the plate and shaking his fingers. The trickster approached the table again, putting the plate in front of his brother.

“Banner said to go slow when you were able to eat again and suggested toast would be a good starting point,” Loki explained as he moved back to where he left his own mug of tea. He had already laid out a packet with the blend he wanted. As he was buttering his toast, the god of thunder glanced over to where Loki was making his tea. The trickster turned and made his way back to the table, sitting down in his normal spot. He slowly stirred his tea, looking over at his brother.

“Thor, you do not often think of the War of the Gauntlet, do you?” Loki asked carefully. Thor took a bite of toast, chewing thoughtfully. After a moment, he swallowed and shook his head.

“Not so much anymore,” he replied, looking over at Loki, who was sipping his tea. “Sometimes, I experience a random memory of that time, but it is not as frequent as it once was.”

Loki placed the mug down on the table, clutching it between his hands. “Do you still worry about me leaving?”

“I never worried about you leaving,” Thor said without hesitation, picking at his toast. “I worry about you getting yourself killed. Again.”

The trickster shook his head, raising his mug to his lips. “We have another thing in common. Color me surprised.”

Thor looked over at him, studying the trickster for a moment as Loki pulled the paper over to him. “Loki, do you worry about losing me?”

Loki kept his eyes on the paper, skimming the front page. “You have always valued the lives of others over your own, brother. I’d be fool if the thought never crossed my mind, especially given recent events.”

Thor swallowed, his brows knitting together. Something about his brother’s response concerned him. The trickster turned a page in the paper, sipping his tea.

“Brother, if you’re uneasy, I hope you will speak to me about it,” Thor said and Loki glanced at him. After a moment, he grinned.

“Thor, we have had so many close calls, I think we’ll always worry about losing each other,” Loki pointed out. The god of thunder couldn’t help but chuckle at that, turning his attention back to his toast. His brother did have a point.

“Heimdall and Sif are going to be overseeing much of the rebuilding efforts for the next few months. We do have to look over some contracts and approve them,” Loki mentioned as Thor continued eating his toast. “Korg is supposed to bring us some documents we need to look over and approve. If you’re still feeling unwell, I can summarize them for you or point out the most important parts.”

“I think I’ll be all right to do a little reading,” Thor replied. “When do we need to approve the contracts by?”

“Next week would be ideal,” Loki replied. “But we can put it off a little longer if need be. There’s no pressing business that requires our immediate attention. New Asgard is still running quite smoothly.”

“You have done a good job putting emergency protocols in place,” Thor complimented. Loki grinned, trying to hide it behind his tea.

“I am merely your advisor, Thor,” the trickster reminded him. “I make suggestions, brilliant ones admittedly, and you approve them. I believe we are equally responsible for New Asgard’s successful protocols.”

Thor chuckled as he continued picking at his toast. Their pleasant breakfast continued on uninterrupted and Thor managed to finish his slice of toast and eat half of another before he needed to lie down again. He made it into the main area of the house and sprawled out on the couch, desiring a change of scenery.

The god of thunder drifted off into an easy sleep. He woke up at one point and found that a pleasantly warm blanket had been put over him, tucked in around his shoulder. He could hear Loki and Korg’s soft voices a few feet away but Thor drifted back off to sleep before he could eavesdrop on the conversation.

When Thor woke up again, he saw Loki’s dark head nearby. The trickster was sitting with his back against the couch. His knees were drawn up slightly and he was resting the document he was reading on them. Loki marked something with a pencil and then dropped his hand again.

Thor smiled and reached out, dropping his hand on Loki’s soft dark hair, startling the trickster.

“The Hel, Thor?” Loki exclaimed, twisting to look at his brother. Thor grinned even wider.

“Just checking,” Thor said softly. Loki rolled his eyes, though a small grin split his lips. He removed his brother’s hand from his head.

“Rest, brother,” the trickster urged, adjusting the blanket on the god of thunder. Thor nestled down more under the covers, closing his eye.

“Loki?”

“Hmm?” Loki replied and from his voice, Thor could tell he was looking at the documents again.

“You know you’re safe, right? You do feel safe, don’t you, brother?”

Thor opened his eye when he heard Loki shift his weight. The trickster studied him with a look of curiosity.

“Of course I do, brother,” Loki replied, surprised to find that he meant it. He’d rarely felt safe in his life, but the closest he’d ever felt to safe was when he was with Thor. The trickster hadn’t ever expected to find a place where he felt consistently safe, a home where he became used to that feeling of safety. But somehow, that was exactly what he felt in New Asgard.

“Good,” Thor whispered, pulling the blanket up a little more. “I’m glad you’re here, brother.”

Loki smiled. “I am too, Thor.”

“Do you need any help with that?” Thor asked around a yawn, already half-asleep.

“No, Thor. You can rest and when you’re more awake, we can review these,” Loki replied. Thor soon drifted off into an easy sleep again. The trickster smiled at his brother, reaching over and running his fingers through his short hair. Then he turned his attention back to the documents he was looking over, intending to review them before his brother awoke again.

Outside, he could hear the birds singing. It was another peaceful day in New Asgard, their home.

 

 

_**The End** _

**Author's Note:**

> A nice little quiet story :)
> 
> Oh! I miss all my readers dearly. I've still got a couple ideas written down that I'm hoping to expand upon soon. Once I meet this deadline, I should have a little more free time and then, hopefully, there will be some more adventures in New Asgard (and elsewhere).
> 
> I hope everyone enjoyed this little tale.
> 
> As always, comments and kudos are welcomed and appreciated. I love chatting with you lot.
> 
> Thanks for reading.


End file.
